Srinagar: Kashmir was cut off from the rest of the country on Saturday as both surface and aerial connectivity to the Valley was disrupted due to heavy snowfall, which threw life out of gear here. Most places in Kashmir, including plains of the Valley, received moderate to heavy snowfall overnight, officials of the MeT Department said. The snowfall, which began in the late afternoon on Friday, continued in most parts of the Valley on Saturday morning, they said, adding that it was one of the heaviest snowfalls in recent years in the plains of Kashmir.
Srinagar recorded 10 inches of snowfall till 8:30 on Saturday morning and the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir recorded two feet of fresh snow. While Qazigund recorded 11 inches, Kokernag three inches, Pahalgam 16 inches and Kupwara 17 inches of snow.
The higher reaches of the Valley received heavy snowfall which led to closure of the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway and other road links, a spokesman of the Traffic Control Room here said. He said that Mughal Road, Srinagar-Leh National Highway and Bandipora-Gurez road too were closed for traffic.
Most areas of the Valley were without electricity since Friday night, the officials said. Owing to the snowfall, the night temperature in the Valley rose on Friday night, providing relief to the residents from the intense cold conditions.